The Key Page 9

  Dipping his chin to his chest, he prayed. But on their own, his wings angled against the cold air rushing past him. The crash never happened and he opened his eyes. Objects on the ground grew smaller, and he flapped his wings and ascended. He didn’t even need to think about it; his wings knew what to do and all he had to do was let them.

  He let out a whoop of joy as he soared above the countryside. The wind blasted past him and wet flakes of snow splashed against his face like cold raindrops. It felt so natural, so easy, as if his body had developed flying muscles and instincts when it had changed. The fear had vanished. He didn’t even mind the cold; his fur kept him comfortable.

  He needed to turn — and with the thought, his wings tilted, banking him above the river and its line of trees. In the distance he could see the high school, tiny figures moving around the outdoor track in some after-school activity. Only a few cars still waited in the student lot.

  The highway lead away from the school, into the trees, and the road to Maddie’s house broke off from that. A few flaps of his marvelous wings brought him over the line of pavement and there she was, biking home from school, her backpack bulging in the front basket. She struggled to pedal up a small hill as snow lightly fell on her tiny frame. She seemed so small, so defenseless, from his eagle’s-eye view, head down as her legs pumped.

  He heard the car before he saw it. Brakes squealed. Fractions of seconds, that was all the reaction time he had.

  Without thought, his wings folded. He swooped down, surely in full view of the careless driver, wrapped his arms around Maddie’s middle, and lifted her from the bike. His wings fought for altitude. Chase cringed as the bike crumpled beneath the car’s tires.

  He tightened his hold and flew until they reached a clearing. Landing — should he pretend he was a plane? But again his wings knew what to do. They backpedaled, then folded, setting them down lightly beside a stand of trees. He released her and waited for her to scream, but she remained strangely silent. She slumped to a sitting position on the whitening ground and stared at him, her eyes huge and glassy.

  Awkwardly, he bent over her. “Are you hurt?” His voice had somehow become gruff and it didn’t sound like him at all.

  She shook her head. White puffs of air escaped her parted lips. Sirens wailed in the distance. He wanted to hold her, warm her, but feared imminent discovery. Bad enough that the driver must have seen him.

  Squatting before her, he said, “People are coming to help you. Stay here until they arrive. Okay?”

  She nodded and looked down.

  The sirens were getting closer fast. Chase turned, spread his wings, ran a few steps, and lifted into flight. Tempting to soar overhead and watch the rescue, but instead he flew low over the trees toward home. When he arrived he knocked on the workshop door and his father answered.

  Dad pulled him inside. “Well?”

  “I got there before the car hit her.” He fell against an empty wall, his chest rising and falling from exertion. Flying had felt natural, like breathing, but it left him panting as if he’d run for miles.

  “What did she say when she saw you?” Dad asked.

  “Nothing.”

  “Nothing? She didn’t scream?”

  “No. It was like she was in a trance. I don’t think she realized I was real.” Chase stretched his wings — they felt cramped, maybe overworked — but managed to keep from tumbling more tools from the racks.

  Dad whistled quietly through his teeth. “Astonishing.”

  “Maybe I can transform back now?”

  “Maybe.” Dad stepped back, tapping his forefinger to his chin.

  He’d done what he’d set out to do. Chase relaxed. Knowing Maddie was safe caused his heart rate to slow and the adrenaline seeped away, letting his breathing ease. Nerve endings awoke and it felt like a thousand tiny needles pricked him at the same time. He gritted his teeth to keep from crying out. The transformation to his human form took only a minute. Then he shivered on the cot and Dad threw a blanket over his bare shoulders.

  Gnawing his lip, Chase asked, “Will I change again?”

  “It is a distinct possibility,” Dad shrugged, “although I haven’t transformed again. But then, I’m not touching the girl constantly.”

  Not something he wanted to discuss with his father. Chase ignored the accusation. “So you think it might happen again if Maddie touches me?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “Don’t those books say anything?” Chase pointed to a new stack littering the workbench.

  “If they do, I haven’t found it.”

  Chase crossed his legs and pulled the blanket tighter. Being fully human again felt strange. “Exactly what have you discovered?”

  “Just a bunch of random facts about the Donovan family, like that we have sons, not daughters.”

  “Has it always been like that?”

  “For as far back as the family kept records.”

  Yep, he was in a weird family. “You’ve learned nothing else?”

  “I’m afraid the things I’ve learned are more confusing than helpful.”

  Chase didn’t care if all he ever had was a son. Considering his pack of brothers, that felt normal. Right now he had more immediate concerns. “Let me get this straight. You’re saying I could go to school, and if Maddie touches me, I could transform right there? In front of everybody!”

  “That’s a possibility.”

  Chase threw his hands into the air. “This is impossible. Senior year, Dad! Senior year! I can’t avoid the whole year just because I’m afraid of changing into a freak. I’ll just have to find a way to control it.”

  “One way might be to stay away from Maddie.”

  “Dad!”

  “I’m not telling you what to do, just that it might work.”

  “But I can’t. It would break her heart. We’re friends. She’s already lost so much; if I abandon her…” He shook his head, unable to finish the thought. Not only would staying away hurt Maddie, but him as well.

  Dad opened his mouth as if to speak but was interrupted by a timid knock on the door. “Alex?” said Mom’s voice.

  “Yes, Carissa?” Dad straightened.

  “Maddie’s grandma just called. She’s frantic. She said Maddie never made it home from school today. Do you know if Chase has heard from her?”

  Chase whispered, “But what about the fire trucks and police? When I left, flashing lights and sirens were headed her way. I told her to wait and they would find her. Why didn’t they find her?”

  Too late, he felt the now-familiar tingle and pain in his gut. Eyes closed, he visualized Maddie sitting where he had left her. Chase’s voice took on a gruffer tone as he asked, “What is she doing?”

  Dad hissed. “Chase! Your mother is right outside.”

  “I know.” But he couldn’t help what happened next. One moment he was curled on the bed and the next he was standing, his wings flared at his sides. “I’ll go out the back.”

  “But Chase—”

  Before his father could say more, Chase left.

  Chapter 10

  How long have I been here?

  Maddie slowly awoke from her daze. Her breath came in short rasping gasps and stars swam before her vision. She grabbed her purse, which somehow hung at her side, and searched the contents for her inhaler, coming up empty-handed. When she was younger, she’d been prone to asthma attacks and had never gone anywhere without her inhaler. Recently, however, the attacks had been much further apart and she no longer carried the life-saving device. That might have been a mistake. She opened her purse and breathed into it like a bag until the stars disappeared. As soon as she reached the house, she would stick the inhaler back in her purse.

  She wanted to stretch out her legs and lean back on her hands, but she shivered so violently that she knew exposing more of herself to the icy air would be a mistake. Hugging her knees to her chest, she tried to remember how she’d gotten there, in a field away from the road and without her bike or ba
ckpack.

  She’d been biking home from school; that she knew. Vaguely she recalled skidding tires and stopping her bike to glance back. Sliding on the icy road, the car had been so close that the cold hard reality of death had seemed imminent. It had been too late to move. Eyes closed, she had waited for the car to strike. Then the wind had been knocked from her as she was snatched away. The ground had grown smaller beneath her. Something had lifted her and carried her to where she presently sat.

  She closed her eyes and imagined her rescuer.

  The— the creature in her memory had been at least seven feet tall, with legs and feet like the hindquarters of a dog. Its arms, however, had been human, with regular hands and long fingers that ended in sharp, pointy claws. Massive wings had spanned wider than he was tall. Fine gray fur had covered both its human and animal features. And it had talked!

  She laid her hand against her forehead. She didn’t feel feverish. If she thought she’d seen that, then she should be.

  Maybe the car had hit her and she was in a coma. Perhaps the creature had been a hallucination. She checked herself for injuries but found no signs of trauma or bleeding. Of course, if she was in a coma, she might not be seeing herself as she really was.

  Maddie struggled to stand on her wobbly legs. Sirens still wailed in the distance and she waited, but no help arrived. She thought she’d seen the road when she’d first sat up, but now it was gone, hidden by the deepening dusk and lowering clouds. Not even flashing emergency lights showed through the night’s fall. That morning she’d expected heavier snow. Looked like it had arrived.

  Her sweatshirt and jeans were wet and cold, and she shivered harder than ever. She’d been in danger from the car, but now the cold was a bigger danger. She needed to move before she froze. She stumbled forward. Several trails branched off from the clearing. One should lead to the road, another out toward home, and another back into town. But she didn’t know which went where. She chose one and forced herself to walk.

  Within a few yards, the trees thickened on either side of the trail she’d chosen. Pine needles rustled. Fear squeezed her heart. “Get a grip, Maddie. It’s just the wind.”

  It blew again, moaning through the trees like a lost soul. She shivered harder and kept up the monologue. “What have you gotten yourself into? You should have walked toward the road. But you can’t find the road. This is crazy, stumbling around in the woods while it’s snowing.” Her teeth started chattering, interrupting her flow, and she clenched her jaws together.

  She wrapped her arms around her middle. Her fingernails were turning blue. The sweatshirt stuck to her and a deeper shudder wracked her body. The fear inside her was colder than the surrounding air. Wandering around through the woods like this, she’d never find her way home. She’d die of exposure and maybe they’d find her in the spring after the thaw…

  But before she could complete the thought, massive wings pumped overhead, sounding like a blacksmith’s bellows. She looked up and stopped, leaning against a rough pine’s trunk for support.

  The gryphon-like creature stared at her, blocking her path ahead. Her heart thumped loudly in her ears. She took a step back and swallowed.

  Its eyes narrowed as it closed the distance between them.

  Hands behind her, she backed up until another pine blocked her retreat. Closing her eyes, she chanted in her head, It’s not real, it’s not real.

  A wisp of warmth struck her cheek. She opened her eyes. The back of the creature’s knuckle lightly stroked her cheek and she sucked in a breath. Quickly, she said, “I did what you said.”

  It didn’t answer. Its expression was blank.

  She gnawed on the inside of her mouth. Would the creature slide his nail across her exposed throat? Throw her to the ground or attack her? With the tree to her back she couldn’t get away, couldn’t outrun his wings — but instead he lifted his snout and turned his head from side to side, like a cat does when hunting.

  Intent on figuring out the creature’s intentions, she said, “Um, thank you for saving me from the car. I thought I was a goner.” Thought I was a goner? Couldn’t I have come up with something more original? Wait, why should she bother impressing a creature? Was she going to take him home as a pet? Since he refused to vanish the way a figment of her imagination would.

  It’s not real, it’s not real… okay, maybe it is.

  If she wasn’t mistaken, the beast raised an eyebrow. Encouraged by still being alive, she added, “Do you find something amusing?”

  He coughed behind his hand. He — yes, the beast had to be male. He looked rugged and tough. No clothing, but the thick, pale fur protected his body better than the sopping sweatshirt did her.

  She shivered again, harder. She’d forgotten the cold in her fear, but now anger filled her. “Don’t you have anything to say? You told me to wait. And I waited. What was I supposed to wait for?”

  “The authorities.” His gruff voice made her heart skip a beat. It was so deep, it seemed to come from his nonexistent boots.

  Sudden weariness overcame her. She slumped, slid underneath his arm, and continued along the trail. Over her shoulder, she yelled, “Well, they didn’t find me, so I’m going home.” If she could find home, of course. Maybe if she stayed mad enough, her boiling blood would keep her warm, along with the exercise.

  Two steps and the creature scooped her into his arms.

  Instinctively she struggled, but his hold tightened and he pulled her tight against his warm chest. The beast ran, spread his wings, and flapped, one incredible downdraft, lifting them skyward.

  The ground disappeared in the still-lowering clouds. Maddie buried her head in the creature’s chest, clenched his forearms, and held on for dear life. At first she hid her face because she didn’t want to look. But once his warmth melted the ice within her cheeks, she snuggled and relaxed. Somehow, she knew he wouldn’t hurt her.

  They landed at the wooded perimeter surrounding her grandma’s land. He didn’t immediately let go and she absorbed his heat. She almost felt warm and the shivering had mostly stopped.

  “You have to go the rest of the way alone,” he whispered in her ear as he finally settled her on her feet.

  Cold seeped in again. She wrapped her arms around her middle and stepped back reluctantly. He didn’t move.

  “What are you?”

  He didn’t answer.

  “Am I dead?” she asked.

  Still he said nothing.

  She bit her lip and stared into his amber-colored eyes. They were beautiful, glowing in the gloom like golden coals. “Thank you.”

  He nodded.

  She turned on her heel and ran. Within a hundred feet, she broke free of the trees and raced onto the gravel road leading to her grandma’s house. Two police officers turned, staring, and started toward her. Through the pine needles and bare branches behind her, she felt the creature’s heated gaze.

  Grandma Draoi stumbled beside one officer. “Maddie!”

  Maddie fell into her arms and accepted her fierce embrace. It felt so good, so much like home.

  “Child, where have you been? I’ve been worried sick.”

  Grandma Draoi looked much older than she had the night before, and Maddie fought pangs of guilt.

  “A car almost hit me, but I — I avoided it. It destroyed my bike, though. I ended up in a clearing and my mind was foggy. It took me awhile to find the road.”

  “You poor dear,” said Grandma Draoi, hugging her even tighter.

  Maddie hoped the beast had supersonic hearing so he would know she hadn’t turned him in. Besides, everyone would think she was crazy if she told them what had really happened. She thought she was crazy, when she thought about it.

  After she’d explained further to the police, they left. Finally warm, Maddie rushed through her dinner of hot soup and retired to her room. Throughout the evening she had shot glances out the window in hopes of catching the gryphon still watching over her, but she had been disappointed. Sketchpad in hand, she dr
ew every feature she could remember. The gryphon took life on the page, his height and breadth filling it. Carefully she sketched in the glorious feathers of his wings and the amber heat of his eyes.

  Pad sitting like an easel on her nightstand, she fell into bed and stared at the image. Lids fluttering closed, she dreamed of a gray furry beast flying amongst the clouds.

  ****

  Chase waited until Maddie entered the house and the police left before taking flight and returning home. He entered the sanctuary of the workshop and waited while his body relaxed and transformed back to normal. Folded clothes rested on the edge of the cot and he smiled at Dad’s foresight.

  He joined the family for dinner, but barely made it through the event. His eyelids drooped from the previous night’s lack of sleep. Finally, exhausted more than sated, he made a hasty excuse and retired to his room.

  Laptop flipped open, he checked his email and thought about corresponding with friends in California, but as he set his hands on the keyboard to type all he could see were the hands of his gryphon form. He leaned back and sighed. He would never again be the young, carefree boy he’d been just a couple of days before. Now he was something entirely different. Some sort of superhuman or monster, he wasn’t sure which.

  Maybe he should find a mask and create himself a secret identity. Then he would need a really cool name. He could be Gryphon Man or Furry Flying Fellow or…

  He was so lame. He lay down, hoping to forget the day and what the future might hold.

  Chapter 11

  Not until the next morning did Maddie realize she had a huge problem — no way to reach school, no backpack, no books, and no completed pile of homework. The teachers were going to kill her when she told them she’d lost everything… that is, if they believed her story at all. She paced the living room and gnawed on her lip. She should have asked the police for a report before they left; that would have been proof positive. She plopped onto the sofa and laid her elbow on the arm. Maybe she should call Chase. She hadn’t seen or heard from him since Wednesday afternoon. Maybe he’d changed his mind about being her friend?